Enter, the King of Israel, the Prince of Peace?

December 21, 2022

Enter, The King of Israel, The Prince of Peace?

At the height of Jesus’ ministry, He enters Jerusalem in a triumphant parade. People are throwing their cloaks on the ground as a sort of “red carpet” path for Him.

“And as He rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. As He was drawing near—already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of His disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

Luke 19:36-38 ESV 

They are waving palm branches, calling Jesus their king, and shouting praise to God. 

“The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!””

John 12:12-13 ESV

Palm branches were a political symbol as well as religious. They could be seen by Rome as inciting an uprising.

And some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”

Luke 19:39 ESV

It made the Pharisees nervous, and they sought to silence the shouting. Jesus refused to suppress the celebration and instead received the praise and worship as His due.

Jesus was unconcerned about how the Romans would interpret His actions and the cry of the crowd. Jesus was focused not on the possible consequences but on following the path His Father laid out for Him.

It’s interesting that the crowd cried out “peace in heaven” but I doubt they were thinking about “peace on earth” at that moment. They were envisioning a King who would set them free from Roman rule and establish Israel as a kingdom again. The restoration they were seeking was social and political. And if Christ were to create Israel anew as they desired, they would not be walking the path of peace, but the road of revolt.

It is true that Jesus is the King of Israel, but His Kingdom is not of this world.

Jesus is the Prince of true, internal, eternal Peace. And the population of Jerusalem had no idea how to walk the path of peace that Jesus wanted to offer them.

And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes.”

Luke 19:341-42 ESV

A new kingdom would come to earth through Jesus.

Peace would come as well.

Not political, social, or familial peace.

Not a kingdom of political power and the might of armies.

Something far greater, longer lasting, and more powerful.

Consider:

How have we misunderstood how Jesus operates in this world?

How have we missed the path of peace?

Remember:

Palm trees are part of many Nativity scenes. When you see them, think about Palm Sunday and Jesus being hailed as King, and at the same time, being so misunderstood.

Share:

Have God’s plans ever been the exact opposite of yours?

Have you ever felt excitement over “what God is doing” only to have the situation turn out very differently than what you expected?